Austin Trout rode down the escalators late Monday night, a large smile planted on his happy face.

A crowd of 50 or 60 people waited through Trout's flight delays at El Paso International Airport to welcome home the WBA world junior middleweight champion, returning home to Las Cruces after his dominating unanimous-decision victory over boxing legend Miguel Cotto Saturday night in New York City's Madison Square Garden.

Boxer Austin Trout is greeted by a young fan after arriving Monday night at the El Paso International Airport. (Vanessa Monsisvais / El Paso Times)

"Long day," Trout said with a grin.

Long day or no, Trout stood just a few feet from those escalators, signing autographs and posing for pictures with almost every one of his fans. He stayed for nearly 45 minutes.

"Hey, if these people came out to see me, the least I can do is sign an autograph or pose for a picture," Trout said. "Especially in boxing. We don't have a team to push the publicity. These are my fans and I appreciate them."

Trout said he left New York City at 11 a.m. EST Monday. But this was a happy wait. He recalled a more nervous wait Saturday night. The fight was over, he seemed to have won ... but there was that interminable wait for the judges' scorecards.

Advertisement

"There were a million things going through my mind while I was standing there waiting," he said, shaking his head. "I was over-assessing everything. I did enough to win but I was thinking about every round. There were some close rounds. Could they (the judges) take this from me? Finally, I just went back to prayer, praying to God that if they did take it from me, to help me handle it."

But his worries were unfounded.

Fans greet Austin Trout at the El Paso International Airport on Monday. Trout retained his title against Miguel Cotto on Saturday in New York. (Vanessa Monsisvais / El Paso Times)

Trout scored a dominating win -- 117-110 on two judges' cards, 119-109 on the third judge's scorecard. It was just as dominating a decision as his other three world title defenses.

Abie Han was one of the airport visitors. Han trains with Trout, spars with him and has his own world title aspirations with an 18-0 professional record.

"I've watched a lot of fights, been in a lot and I don't think I've ever been so nervous as I was watching Austin," Han said. "I was so excited. My heart was beating a mile-a-minute. I'd like to be where Austin is someday and he inspires me, motivates me. He fought a great fight and it was an impressive win."

Trout's longtime trainer Louie Burke said, "After the fight I was really confident we won. But I was still afraid we might not have gotten the decision. But Austin fought a great fight, he deserved the win and he got it."

Trout laughed and said he was enjoying the minute -- every minute -- while he was in New York City and he continues to enjoy each minute.

"It's what I've worked for," he said. "It was amazing to have all those people all around you. It was amazing seeing billboards in New York City with my face on them. And, yes, I took some pictures in Madison Square Garden from every angle on my way out."

It was obviously worth the wait -- Saturday night and Monday night.

Bill Knight may be reached at bknight@elpasotimes.com; 546-6171. Follow him on Twitter @BillKnightept

ODESSA, Texas (AP) — A West Texas man has been charged with impersonating an officer by using sirens and flashing lights to skip to the head of the drive-thru line at a fast-food restaurant. Full Story